1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to a method and device for organizing, storing, and coordinating the combined use of aerosol for the treatment of disorders including respiratory tract disorders for the purpose of reducing medication error and increasing therapeutic compliance.
2. Technical Review
Many drugs are utilized by patients over a period of time in varying amounts and in varying order to provide for their effective administration. Packaging has been developed for aiding the user of such drugs to comply with the proper administration over the proper time period. The dispensing apparatus associated with such multiple day administrative drugs are typically directed to the administration of pills or capsules, or similar solid medication.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,039,080, for example, discloses a tray having individual compartments for pills which may contain a week's medication with indicia indicating the day of the week and time of the day the medication is to be taken.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,553,670 discloses another device comprising a support on which are located two different ingestible medicinal substances in a single dose form with an adjacent portion for instructional information.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,593,819 discloses a covered pill tray of rectangular configuration having an array of open-topped compartments to hold a supply of medication arranged by the day and time of taking the medication.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,736,849 discloses a method and another type of dispenser for the storage and dispensing of calendar-oriented pills. U.S. Pat. No. 5,181,189 discloses a device for storage and time-regulated dispensing of drugs which includes a drug container to which is secured a signal generator.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,377,841 discloses a sleep therapy package which includes an audio recording of program material for inducing sleep, a card having a plurality of doses, some of which are medicine for inducing sleep and at least one of which is a placebo, along with patient instructions.
Cartonless packaging systems for containing liquids used, for example, as ophthalmic products, which also contain means for storing tablets and instructional material are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,489,026 and 5,489,027.
While the marketplace abounds with pill boxes and organizers for oral medications, no such organization tool is presently available for a lay person to organize individual aerosols together. Further, no pharmaceutically formulated device which combines aerosols together into a single organized treatment device with clear indicia and coordinated instructions is presently commercially marketed.
It is well known that ease of use is essential for medication compliance, and therefore for effective therapy. Multiple and variously configured individual aerosols are frequently prescribed to be used in conjunction with each other to comprise a treatment regimen for respiratory diseases. The technique of use, frequency of use, and number of actuations may be different for each. Their order of use may be important. It is noteworthy that a device to enhance ease of use and compliance with multiple aerosol medications, used together as a regimen, has been overlooked. The asthma death rate has notably increased in the United States in recent years, in part attributable to lack of patient compliance with multiple aerosol regimens. There is clearly a need for a method of reducing medication error and for enhancing therapeutic compliance of combined aerosol therapeutic regimens. It is therefore the object of the present invention to provide these devices and methods.